D i d y o u k n o w ? - C H A R L E S D I C K E N S

English Victorian era author, Charles Dickens was born on February 7, 1812, in Portsmouth, England.

As a prolific 19th century author of short stories, plays, novellas, novels, fiction and non, during his

lifetime he became known for his remarkable characters, his mastery of prose in the telling of their

lives, and his depictions of the social classes, mores and values of his times. Some considered him the

spokesman for the poor, for he definitely brought much awareness to their plight, the downtrodden

and the have-nots. Over the course of his writing career, he wrote the beloved classic novels Oliver

Twist, A Christmas Carol, Nicholas Nickleby, David Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expec-

tations. He also wrote The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, a series of sketches which took the

form of monthly serial instalments. This literary colossus of his age died of a stroke in 1870 in Kent,

England, leaving his final novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, unfinished. Perhaps the best way to

show his literary influence is to say today the term Dickensian is used to describe

something that is reminiscent of him and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically

repulsive characters. ▪ I.P.

Monthly newsletter for and by English learners and teachers

Editors:

Maja Ivanović, prof. Komercijalna i trgovačka škola Bjelovar

Irena Pavlović, prof. mentor Srednja škola Čazma

email: sparkles.newsletter@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sparkles.newsletter

C O N T R I B U T O R S T O

T H I S I S S U E :

Ivan Lukovečki Cartoon artist

And here it is again - the month of love. It is said that the middle of February is the beginning of the birds’ mating season, and we all know what happens to cats and dogs... So, who are we to argue when love takes over? This issue of Sparkles© brings you a variety of lovely (punny, right? ) articles. Right under this find out something about Charles Dickens. He is, after all, one of the most prominent English writers of all time. In the Students’ corner, the theme is, of course, romance. But if you prefer something different... Take a look at how it is on the other

Issue 20/15

February 2015

Inside this issue:

The invention of romantic love

2

On the other side of love 3

Love Quiz 4

25 Signs You’re Teaching In 2015

6

English language competition

8

W h e n l o v e t a k e s o v e r … h t t p : / / y o u t u . b e / z u d b z 4 h O c b c

side of love...

Try solving the love quiz and the

crossword puzzle - no cheating,

please! - and send us your

answers.

Teachers’ corner shows you what

it’s like to be in the here and now,

and last but not least, we bring

you the list of the best students

from all the students in our county

who get to show what they’re

worth on February 26th in

Čazma.

We wish them all good luck.

Enjoy reading...

Once upon a time in FEBRUARY 06/02/1952 - King George VI of England died. Upon his death, his daughter Princess Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth II. Her coronation took place on June 2, 1953. 11/02 - Celebrated in Japan as the founding date of the Japanese nation. 11/02/1990 - Nelson Mandela, at age 71, was released from prison after serving 27 years of a life sentence on charges of attempting to overthrow the apartheid government. 15/02/1989 - Soviet Russia completed its military withdrawal from Afghanistan after nine years of unsuccessful involvement in the civil war between Muslim rebel groups and Afghan government. 17/02/1909 - Apache Chief Geronimo (1829-1909) died while in captivity at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He had led a small group of warriors on raids throughout Arizona and New Mexico. 24/02/1582 - Pope Gregory XIII corrected mistakes on the Julian calendar by dropping 10 days and directing that the day after October 4, 1582 would be October 15th. 26/02/1848 - The Communist Manifesto pamphlet was published by two young socialists, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It advocated the abolition of all private property and a system in which workers own all means of production, land, factories and machinery.

29/02 - the leap day of the Gregorian calendar, is a date that occurs in most years that are divisible by 4. Years that are divisible by

100, but not by 400, do not contain a leap day. Although most modern calendar years have 365 days, a complete revolution around the

sun (one Solar year) takes approximately 365 days and 6 hours. An extra 24 hours thus accumulates every four years, requiring

that an extra calendar day be added to align the calendar with the sun's apparent position.

P a g e 2

T H I S M O N T H ’ S B U Z Z

The idea of romantic love that we have in

mind today is largely different than the

concept of love in ancient and early

mediaeval times. The history of the concept

can be followed continuously, revealing

numerous changes throughout the time.

Ancient Greeks were among the first to

describe love. They separated its carnal

version, i.e. physical love, from its spiritual

or emotional aspect. Love was then

described in the Bible and, later on,

examined by medieval philosophers and

theologists. Modern idea of romantic love

started in the 13th or 14th century, in

so-called High Middle Ages, and is closely

connected to troubadours.

T h e i n v e n t i o n o f r o m a n t i c l o v e

Troubadours were both composers and

performers of special kind of poetry

dedicated to chivalry and courtly love. Their

descriptions of love that takes you over the

moon or gives you butterflies in the

stomach shaped the idea of romantic love

we have nowadays. For the first time in

history, the future couples’ feelings played

an important role in forming a relationship.

Before the troubadour times, love was not

so closely connected to emotions. The

norm was arranged marriages that were

based on various business relationships or

political alliances. Nobody asked about the

feelings the couple has or doesn’t have.

The parents or their representatives agreed

on all the details and sealed the deal. It

wasn’t unusual for a couple to get to know

each other only once they were married.

Although there are still similar practices in

some parts of the world, for most of us it is

romantic love that shapes our world and

directs our future.

But the modern ideal of love is not the only

thing coming from mediaeval age. Many of

today’s courting rituals have their roots in

those times, especially in mediaeval

chivalry. The best known examples are

buying woman a dinner or opening a door

for her. Buying gifts, especially flowers, was

supposed to send a specific message while

giving away some other presents could

even mean proposing one’s hand in

marriage.

To sum up, most of us would surely agree

that contemporary idea of love is much

better than the traditional one. We cannot

imagine our parents choosing our partners

or basing relationships on anything else

than emotions. However, we should ask

ourselves if we would be thinking the same

if we had been born ten centuries ago. And

we cannot but wonder what love will look

like in the distant future. ▪ I.P.

P a g e 3

T H I S M O N T H ’ S B U Z Z

O n t h e o t h e r s i d e o f l o v e , o r r o m a n t i c g e s t u r e s g o n e t e r r i b l y w r o n g

Putting a ring inside your girlfriend’s milkshake may seem romantic, but when you and your friends encourage her to chug it, you might just ruin the surprise. It’s not so romantic and not at all fun when she drinks her engagement ring and has to go to hospital...

They say love is blind, but sometimes it can cause deafness. One Chinese woman became partially deaf for two months after her partner blew her right ear drum out after a rather passionate kiss. A doctor told a Chinese newspaper: “While kissing is normally very safe, doctors advise people to proceed with caution.

Hiding a diamon engagement ring in a helium balloon is pretty romantic, right? You give your love the balloon, she pops it, finds the ring and says “Yes!”, and you live happily ever after. But it’s not so romantic when you accidentally let go of the balloon the minute you step outside the florist.

It used to be ok to walk your sweetie all the way down the tarmac just to spend the most possible time together before kissing each other goodbye, but these days it’s not so simple. One man actually shut down a whole airport for five hours just to kiss his girlfriend goodbye. He slipped through security so every single passenger had to go through the whole check-in process a second time, delaying flights for hours.

A man decided that pretending to have an exorbitant amount of money would be the best possible way to impress his woman. Rather than just buying some expensive-looking clothes or renting an expensive car, the man chose to buy a fake check to attempt to deposit into his account. The amount of the check was $36.5 million, so it was no surprise that the bank clerks were suspicious when it was presented to them. After the police were called, the man admitted to purchasing the fake check for $70, but said he only did it because he really wanted to impress his lady love. So, is that really the way to go?

T h e L o v e Q u i z

STUDENTS’ CORNER P a g e 4

You can find this quiz and the crossword puzzle on our Facebook page. Please send us your answers, and we’ll publish the names of the winners with the most correct answers in our next issue.

V a l e n t i n e ’ s D a y C a r t o o n

P a g e 5

STUDENTS’ CORNER

C H E C K I T O U T ! Have you read this? Have you seen this? Have you heard this?

Daniel Stone, once the only white boy

in a native Eskimo village, is a comic

book artist. His wife teaches Dante’s

Inferno at a local college; his

daughter, Trixie, is the light of his life

– and a girl who only knows her father

as the even-tempered, mild-mannered

man he has been her whole life. Until,

that is, she is date raped and Daniel

finds himself struggling with

powerlessness and rage that may not

just swallow him whole, but destroy

his family and

his future. Still,

when it comes

to family, one is

ready to go to

hell just to save

them. But, is

there a way

back? ▪ I.P.

The Hunters is an adventure film

about a family of archaeologists who

travel around the world looking for

and protecting magical objects for

which we all believe don’t exist, like

Cinderella’s glass slipper.

After their parents go missing, Paxton

and Tripp Flynn find out about their

secret heritage from a close family

friend. They immediately set out on a

mission to save both the world and

their parents from the man who had

betrayed

them all. A

great way to

spend your

Sunday

afternoon. ▪

M.I.

No Sound Without Silence is the

fourth studio album by Irish pop

rock band The Script. The album was

released in September 2014 and has

been described as a "prequel" to the

band's eponymous debut album,

recorded with the ideology of

creating an album better than what

they had previously recorded.

"Superheroes", released as the lead

single promoting the album on 22

July 2014, became an instant hit all

over the world. The other songs are

not far behind. You shouldn’t miss

it... ▪

M.I.

2 5 S i g n s Y o u ’ r e T e a c h i n g I n 2 0 1 5

P a g e 6

TEACHERS’ CORNER

You think of clouds as good things.

You believe tagging is the new email.

You google before you even try to remember.

Students blame passwords and log-in issues rather

than the dog for eating their homework.

You’re in bad shape if the Internet goes down during

a lesson.

You’re sure Vine is rotting your middle schooler’s

brain.

You have a more transparent Facebook policy than

you do on assessment.

You’re scared to explain your blended, student-

centered, mobile-centric classroom to parents, so

you don’t mention any of it on the syllabus.

You’ve “crowdsourced” something–school supplies,

for example.

You're thinking about grading students' homework

based on the number of 'likes' they get.

YouTube makes more sense than television.

You forgot what chalk does to your skin.

You trade rooms with another teacher for a better Wi

-Fi signal—and don’t tell them why.

You’ve texted during class, but have taken a

student’s phone for doing the same.

You plan lessons assuming that every student has Wi

-Fi broadband access 24/7.

The blogosphere is more relevant a term than the

stratosphere.

You spent more this year on tablet peripherals than

you have on pencils and pens.

You giggle when you recall how you used to simply

give tests at the end of a unit.

Have actually used the phrase “digital citizenship”

in a sentence with a straight face.

Flipping the classroom is an instructional strategy

rather than a response to misbehavior.

Your students have to explain certain technologies to

you, but you pretend you already knew.

You seriously consider that if it’s not being talked

about on Twitter, it may not have happened.

You’ve spoken more recently with the tech leader in

Mumbai than the new Math teacher down the hall.

You’d never admit it, but you judge other people by

the tech they carry.

You’re energized–and absolutely fatigued–by the

rate of change in your craft as an educator early in

the 21st century.

P a g e 7

C P D i n t e n m i n u t e s o r l e s s

Searching may be considered synonymous with Google but

for some more demanding work, such as academic research, it

won't get you far. If you need to get started with a broader

search check out some of these academic search engines -

they are great resources.

http://www.teachthought.com/technology/100-search-engines

-for-academic-research/ ▪ I.P.

H A V E Y O U T R I E D . . . ? Have you considered using Twitter as a teaching tool? Why

not contact well-known personalities or create hashtags about

a relevant classroom topic and see if you can spawn participa-

tion from external parties? You may be surprised at just how

much support and interest your students can garner from the

community at large or who's happy to hear from them - all of

which reveal how the power to make valuable new contacts

and influence the world is often waiting just one click away. ▪

I.P.

TEACHERS’ CORNER

January 22nd was a big day

for 166 students from 12

schools in our county who

wanted to see how good their

English is. Second- and

fourth-year students took the

test and were listed in four

different categories: second

year grammar schools students

(2A), second year other

schools students (2B), fourth

year grammar schools students

(4A) and fourth year other

schools students (4B). The

best of them have been

invited to county competition

which will take place in Čazma, on February 26th. The county

commission decided on the

following criteria: 75% for

category 2A, 70% for category

2B, 75% for category 4A and

65% for category 4B. Here are

the names of the students who

made it, together with their

mentors. Congratulations!▪

I.P.

2A Domagoj Škalec Sara Kovačević Valerija Ambrož Dorian Pažin Iva Panić Ivan Gužvinac Leon Kuserbanj Jan Pilipović Borna Rajković

Martina Cug Inga Mušeta Bajić Nina Tuček Inga Mušeta Bajić Inga Mušeta Bajić Inga Mušeta Bajić Martina Terranova Inga Mušeta Bajić Maja Krpan

Grubišno Polje Bjelovar Daruvar Bjelovar Bjelovar Bjelovar Garešnica Bjelovar Bjelovar

2B

Mario Bandur Maja Pečar Dominik Tunić Patrik Noah Šikač Domagoj Petrović Ana Pleško Paolo Toth Josip Rietković Andrej Ontl Luka Markovinović Matija Margotić Leon Krajačić Mario Jozić

Maja Ivanović Ljiljana Srebrenović Romana Gašpar Martina Čukman Antonia Varat Jasmina Kostelac Sonja Ognjačević Martina Čukman Anita Ružić Martina Čukman Ljiljana Srebrenović Romana Gašpar Maja Zalović

Bjelovar Bjelovar Daruvar Bjelovar Daruvar Bjelovar Bjelovar Bjelovar Daruvar Bjelovar Bjelovar Daruvar Daruvar

4A

Lucija Vlatković Dorijan Ivan Čmrlec Tomislav Piršljin Marko Šplichal Iva Družin Hrvoje Bohnec Juraj Kamber Grahovac Laura Barbir Doris Štimac Barbara Palijan

Inga Mušeta Bajić Vedrana Dujnić Petrač Maja Krpan Martina Terranova Jasmina Šimek Maja Krpan Maja Krpan Maja Krpan Nina Tuček Nina Tuček

Bjelovar Čazma Bjelovar Garešnica Daruvar Bjelovar Bjelovar Bjelovar Daruvar Daruvar

4B

Bruno Pintarić Antonio Jošćak Goran Mitrović Josipa Šurkalović Nikola Cepanec Tomislav Golik Antonio Delač Grubić Mislav Faletar Luka Pavičić

Martina Čukman Antonia Varat Irena Pavl ović Romana Gašpar Martina Čukman Marija Šedlbauer Martina Čukman Ivana Plh Antonia Varat

Bjelovar Daruvar Čazma Daruvar Bjelovar Garešnica Bjelovar Bjelovar Daruvar

E n g l i s h l a n g u a g e c o m p e t i t i o n

Our regular contributor, dear

colleague and friend, professor

Romana Gašpar from School or

Economics and Tourism in Daruvar,

was promoted to professor mentor

on January 30. This is the

official recognition of her hard

work in and out of classroom,

both with students and fellow

teachers. The editors of Sparkles©

wish to congratulate Romana and

hope this is just the first step

of a new journey. Congrats,

Romana. Keep up the good work!

MISCELLANEOUS